


Two-Part Invention

by atamascolily



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Adventures of Sinbad (TV)
Genre: Character Study, Crossover, Firouz and Rongar are Science Bros, Gen, Rongar needs some fics too!, Slice of Life, Wakanda, What if?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 14:27:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13483413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atamascolily/pseuds/atamascolily
Summary: Rongar occasionally offers helpful suggestions on how Firouz might improve his inventions. Little does Firouz know that in Rongar's homeland, the isolated African nation of Wakanda, all of these marvels are commonplace...





	Two-Part Invention

**Author's Note:**

> In honor of the upcoming _Black Panther_ movie, here is the Marvel/Adventures of Sinbad crossover that no one asked for, but was totally meant to be. You're welcome. 
> 
> Everything I know about Wakanda I learned from _Captain America: Civil War_ and the _Black Panther_ movie trailer. I hope I've gotten the basics down about Wakanda and vibranium, even if not all of the particulars agree with the comics. I've also assumed that even in the twelfth century, Wakanda was still much more technologically sophisticated than any place else on Earth, and that the artisans use vibranium in everything. 
> 
> For those of you who are unfamiliar with _The Adventures of Sinbad_ , it was a live-action fantasy adventure show that ran for two seasons in the late '90s. In addition to the titular hero Sinbad, it also starred Firouz, a geeky, socially awkward inventor, and Rongar, a tall, dark, silent African warrior with a mysterious past. One day, after noticing how much Rongar is always subtly prompting Firouz's best inventions, I wondered "What if Rongar was actually from Wakanda?" The rest, as they say, is history.

It was always entertaining to watch Firouz at work, especially when he was on the verge of a breakthrough. Sitting a few feet away on the deck of the _Nomad_ , safely out of reach of the enthusiastic flailing and gesticulations, Rongar couldn't help but smile as he watched his companion fiddle with his latest invention: a little black box with a long tube sticking out from both the top and front panels, mounted awkwardly on a makeshift wooden tripod. 

"This magic lantern will revolutionize entertainment and education!" Firouz said, closing the lid with a dramatic flourish. "By modifying a simple _camera obscura_ and adding a series of additional lenses - including one with a painted image - I can project it on to a distant surface, like that tapestry over there!" He pointed to the large, open scroll that Rongar had pinned to the mast with two of his knives, which served as their testing screen. "All I have to do is add the slide and...." 

As he did so, a shadowy figure of a giant monster appeared on the on the weathered papyrus of the scroll. The only problem was, it was upside down and distorted. Firouz cringed and buried his head in his hands. "That shouldn't have happened! It ought to have worked perfectly!"

 _Try turning the slide the other way,_ Rongar signed. _And adjust the angle and placement of the lens while you're at it._. 

"Rongar, that's brilliant! Of course! I should have realized that!" Firouz rushed to comply with the suggestion. The monster abruptly vanished, only to re-appear again a few moments later right-side up and significantly sharper. "It works! It works! We did it!" 

Rongar grinned. Firouz's delight in his work was infectious. It was one of the reasons Rongar enjoyed spending time with him aboard ship when he had no other duties. The inventor might be prone to extreme mood swings, but at least he wore his emotions on the surface, rather than holding back. After a lifetime of intrigue and combat, Rongar found it a refreshing change of pace. 

And at least this time there were no explosions. No _unplanned_ explosions, anyway. Getting the light source for the magic lantern just right involved setting small chunks of quicklime on fire and it had taken quite a bit of trial and error to get the dosage just right. Fortunately, the crew of the _Nomad_ was used to this sort of thing by now, and barely blinked at the occasional blast anymore as half the front deck was covered in smoke and charcoal. 

Excited as he was by the possibilities of his magic lantern, Firouz didn't appear to recognize the larger implications. The basic principles of projecting images had been worked out by Wakandan technicians ages ago and known to every child in the country. Significantly more complex versions, connecting a series of intricate slides in constant motion, were popular entertainments in the royal court. Rongar had never seen anything outside of his native land that matched their sophistication. Only Firouz - a genius polymath ahead of his time and perpetually out of sync in his society - had ever come close. 

In Wakanda, a man with Firouz's talents would have been honored and respected, the head of a large workshop in the capital, with dozens of journeyman and apprentices, with guaranteed contracts from the crown. Here in the outside world, however, he was considered a mere toymaker, an effeminate dilettante for ignoring the usual conventions of masculinity and embracing his passions wholeheartedly. It made Rongar's blood boil to see how others treated Firouz - and, even worse, how accepting and resigned Firouz was to this behaviour. Such a thing would never happen in Wakanda. 

Aside from Rongar, only Sinbad - a man of uncommon insight and unconventional masculinity himself - seemed to recognize Firouz's true worth. Even then, the captain of the _Nomad_ wasn't above a few jokes at the inventor's expense. Certainly, Sinbad appreciated fire and explosions, hanging gliders and catapults - who didn't? - but anything more subtle, or of less obvious utility, was ignored. 

The Ruby Beamer - a windmill-like compendium of crystals that concentrated energy and released it in short, controlled bursts at the operator's will - was proof of this. They used similar devices in Wakanda all the time for communication, allowing the border scouts to convey their findings all the way to the capital in moments, a great advantage in times of crisis. 

Firouz's version - admittedly primitive but functional - was mocked by the rest of the crew, even after it had accidently destroyed an entire copse of trees on a nearby island. To make matters worse, the local despots flattered Firouz into making more, with the intention of using them as weapons against their neighbors. Things would have ended badly had Firouz not come to his senses just in the nick of time and destroyed them. 

_It never would have happened if they had just appreciated him - if they had acknowledged and praised him instead of dismissing him,_ Rongar thought sadly. He did what he could, dispensing honest encouragement and feedback when it was necessary, and spoke tactfully of any mistakes or failures, but Firouz's self-doubt and self-loathing ran deep, and he was often dismissive of Rongar's compliments. 

Still, he did his best to keep the inventor on an even keel, to avoid bouts of melancholia and moping, and to prevent any of his inventions from being similarly misused. And, if Rongar were honest with himself, he occasionally intervened to prevent Firouz from creating anything that might one day be a threat to Wakanda. 

He was never going to explain any of this to Firouz, though. He'd sworn an oath to protect his country, to keep it hidden from all outsiders, to keep it safe. Secrecy - coupled with the strength and courage of its people - kept Wakanda unconquered. 

He especially wasn't going to tell Firouz about vibranium, the marvelous metal that could absorb energy, cut through almost any other substance, and was lighter and easier to work with than bronze or steel. While it was fun to imagine what Firouz might do with such a metal - and the look on his face when he learned of its existence - Rongar knew it was a temptation he would never yield to. Far too much was at stake there, and it would inevitably lead to questions. Despite his friend's good intentions, it would be the beginning of the end for Wakanda if the existence of vibranium or of its source became common knowledge. 

Rongar's leather vest was lined with vibranium on the inside, making it impervious to any edged weapon, let alone the primitive arrows and spears usually directed his way. It'd saved his life more than once. It could even withstand a crossbow bolt, although he was careful not to draw too much attention to his gear, lest anyone ask awkward questions. 

He wasn't concerned about the vest being stolen; a small quantity of vibranium would be of little use to an army. Even Firouz wouldn't be able to do much without another source of ore. And vibranium was only found in Wakanda, which no one on the outside knew existed.

He'd sacrificed so much to keep his country safe. When he'd been captured by strangers on a scouting mission, they'd cut out his tongue when he refused to tell them the secret ways into Wakanda. He would not let affection and friendship reveal what torture and mutilation could not. 

Rongar had always been quiet and reserved, even before his capture, mutilation, and the self-imposed exile that followed. People always underestimated the quiet ones, he'd discovered. They ignored them, maligned them - always at their peril.

It was amazing how much you could learn when other people thought you were stupid. They didn't hold back. They showed you their true selves. They gave you everything you needed to manipulate them and control them. Not only did his silence give him an edge in combat, but it usually unnerved his opponents as well. 

Actions were always louder than words, and Rongar had always been a man of action. He'd found his contributions carried more weight if they were few and far between, right at the critical moment, as he did with Firouz. 

It was a delicate balancing act to explain things to Firouz without revealing how much he knew - or, more importantly, _why_. Fortunately, Firouz was generally so preoccupied with the implications of Rongar's insights that he rarely paused to question their source. To his immense credit, Firouz nearly always remembered Rongar's contributions when he explained his inventions to others - but never in a way that would lead anyone to suspect Rongar was more than what he seemed. 

That was exactly how Rongar wanted it. 

Still, he offered suggestions to Firouz here and there when it seemed harmless. He'd shown Firouz how a little whirligig wind toy, for instance, could dissolve a deadly cloud of smoke when scaled up to massive size. He'd also helped Firouz with his bipedaller - a two-wheeled contraption similar to a popular means of transportation in Wakanda - although he hadn't managed to successfully explain the concept of breaks. That had lead to some unfortunate accidents, and even the addition of leather-reinforced helmets hadn't helped reduce the propensity for injuries, so Firouz had reluctantly shelved it. 

Rongar was often lonely, self-imposed exile, so far away from home and culture, robbed of his ability to speak aloud. Spending time with Firouz and his inventions was a little bit like coming home. 

"Just think, Rongar, some day they'll be making stories of us!" Firouz said, slapping him on the back, still flush with his successful. "You'll be able to see all of us up there! I'll make some more slides and we'll try it out on the crowds next time we're in port..." 

Rongar smiled and nodded absently as Firouz chattered on. One day, when he had atoned for the shame and disgrace of his capture, he'd return. Until then, there was rarely a dull moment on the _Nomad_ \- especially when Firouz was around.

**Author's Note:**

> [Magic lanterns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_lantern) are real, and one of the earliest precursors to modern cinema (hence the references and call-outs in the fic). They weren't invented until the late seventeenth century in Europe, but Firouz has always been a man ahead of his time. 
> 
> Early magic lanterns were initially lit with candles and oil lamps, but those didn't produce very good images. In the 1820s, people started using limelight (quicklime, or calcium oxide, set on fire) instead. Since Firouz loves to play with explosions in the show, I decided limelight would definitely be his preferred light source for the magic lantern, even if it would be rather messy in an enclosed container.


End file.
